In today’s world, business owners are looking to technology to solve their everyday problems and help streamline operations.

Nate Moses, CEO of Precision Landscape Management, in Greenville, S.C., says good labor management software can be one of the most essential tools for a landscaping company.

“Like the CRM that you use for your business, it’s very involved and the more involved you are in it, the more you get out of it,” he says. “You have to utilize it almost on a daily basis to get the most out of it.”

Taking the plunge.

Moses admits he didn’t go looking for a labor management software, and it took him awhile to commit to the investment.

“The product came to us. The salesperson who taught us about it is someone we knew from their previous job,” he says. “He knew the business we were in and knew that labor management was a key part of what we do. We did a lot of our own research, too. It was probably three to four months since he first told us about it before we decided to pull the trigger.”

Daniel Henks, owner of the Missouri-based Earth Effects Outdoor Living, was turned on to his software by a local colleague. After getting the referral, Henks says he made sure to test it with a few members of his team before committing to it.

“We started using (the software) three years ago and had used a few basic types of software before but decided through another local company to give it a try,” he says. “I came to love it pretty quick just because of the efficiency and how things tie together from being out in the field and then coming back to the office and it’s all tied in.”

One of the things Moses says he likes most about his software choice is how tech-forward it is.

“It’s a technology company that handles HR and payroll rather than a HR company trying to use technology,” he says. “We feel like it gives us a lot of advantages on the reporting and predicting side that traditional payroll and HR software has not.”

Getting it together.

Moses and Henks both say the process of implementing the new software was time-consuming but well worth it.

“Obviously, there’s a huge learning curve,” Henks says. “I still say I’m not using it to its full potential because there’s so much you can integrate and automate, and I just haven’t had the time to fully use it. But, even at using it to 35 to 50% of its capacity, I still find it to be a huge value.”

Onboarding the new software took Moses’ company about two months to complete.

“There’s a lot of work that goes into it,” he says. “The process for us started with our office manager really spearheading the project. When you’re implementing something new, I think it’s really important that one person owns the project.”

After getting it set up, the next step is introducing it to the masses.

“When we rolled it out to the company, it was a tiered rollout,” Moses says. “There were three or four weeks where we rolled out specific things. And that went very, very well since it was planned intentionally.”

Henks says his software came with a convenient way for his crews to learn it on their own time.

“There were training videos galore, so you could have your staff watch videos on their phones even to see how it works,” he says. “That saved a lot of time.”

And after training the staff, the next step was encouraging employees to utilize it. Henks says he let employees practice using the new technology for a few weeks before they officially went “live” with it. This way they felt more confident using it when the time came.

“The biggest challenges were getting it set up the right way…and then training both the office and guys in the field. There’s different levels in people’s ability when it comes to technology,” Henks says. “Young people gravitate to it really quick and wonder why you didn’t do it sooner, and the older generation says, ‘I don’t want this new thing. And how in the world am I supposed to learn this?’”

When it came to those older employees, Henks says he allowed more time for training and knew some hiccups might occur during the early stages. But, he says they continued working with those employees.

Moses says the software was well received at Precision.

“I’d give the reception an eight out of 10,” he says. “People are typically resistant to change, but there was enough frustration with our previous software that they were a little more open to the change.”

Reaping the benefits.

Moses says the advantages of labor management software are endless.

“We’ve been using it now for about six months,” he says. “It’s made our payroll process shorter. It has made reporting for our team members better, and it’s made our team members more involved in the process.”

Communication is always key, and Moses says the software has made it a breeze.

“It allows us to do things like make company announcements and schedule company events,” he says. “Some other features it has is that you can survey your staff on different things…and you can also link it with Indeed and other job-tracking software.”

But Moses says there’s one special feature that really sold him.

“The technology, once you’ve used it for a while, can help predict what employees may not be satisfied in their position based on your turnover trends and other common things,” he says. “It has GPS and looks at where people are driving from, how long they’ve been in the company, how long they’ve been in this role and who their supervisor is. It looks at all these different factors and tries to predict that employee’s long-term success at the company and prompts you to proactively have a chat with that person.”

For Henks, the labor management software is all about saving time.

“It’s a lot more efficient. It takes care of a lot of the things that you’d have to bring paper into the office for and enter,” he says. “I also use it for marketing some and could use that heavier.”

Henks says other perks include a customer portal for online payments and he’s able to keep an eye on crews out in the field.

Embracing the times.

The pair believe that the software, and technology in general, is necessary to keep their companies moving forward.

“Like anything in life, you have to keep up with changes or you get left behind,” Henks says. “One of the reasons I like technology is because I like things to be seamless. I’m not a huge company, there’s 15 of us on average, we don’t have the time to do lots of extra things. Anything I can do to push the processes through faster is important.”

Moses says he recognizes that some may be hesitant of the expense but staying stagnant in business could be even more costly.

“When you’re analyzing software you really have to not think about what the expense is but what additional efficiencies you can get out of your business when you do implement it,” he says.

An increasing global population, droughts and a move toward more sustainable options throughout the industry has led to drip irrigation becoming more popular.

Because of this, irrigation companies are working to provide products that are more advanced, environmentally friendly and speed up installation time for contractors.

Benefits beyond saving water.

The primary advantage of drip irrigation is ultimately water conservation.

“It’s the most efficient form of irrigation because it’s putting water directly where it’s needed,” says Peter Lackner, product manager at Toro. “And that’s especially true of subsurface irrigation where it’s putting water directly at the root level.”

Rick Foster, principal product manager with Rain Bird’s landscape drip business unit, calls drip irrigation a problem solver, since it eliminates overspray that winds up on cars, parking lots, sidewalks and other areas where it’s not wanted.

Foster says another perk of choosing subsurface drip irrigation is it reduces acts of vandalism.

“Drip irrigation can be installed subsurface…which means you don’t see it. And if they can’t see it, they can’t damage it. Unfortunately, vandals see a spray that’s popped up and they give it a kick,” he says. “It happens.”

The amount of water needed to run a drip irrigation system also attracts more contractors.

“As the population increases, and there’s more and more demand on the infrastructure, we’re losing more water pressure,” says Rick Hall, market development director with K-Rain. “Drip irrigation, by nature, is a low-pressure delivery system. It’s not going to suffer the same long-term effects of an overhead system.”

Hall adds that during times of droughts, where water conservation is critical, some communities give relief or exemption to water restrictions where drip irrigation systems are installed.

Advancing the apparatus.

Since drip is becoming increasingly more popular, irrigation companies are making a wider range of products to keep up with demand.

Netafim has been working to provide more options when it comes to flow and spacing.

“Dripline used to be about .9 gph (gallons per hour) flow and 12-inch spacing. Most manufacturers still only have one or two flow rates,” says Mauricio Troche, vice president of sales for specialty markets at Netafim. “With our farming background we understood the need for multiple flows to meet different soil or plant types.”

Netafim manufactures equipment with flow rates as low as .26 gph to as high as 1.16 gph, coupled with spacings from six inches to 24 inches.

Troche says the company is also making more check valves for slope and elevation changes.

Rain Bird has been making advancements with check valves too, by adding them to each emitter in the dripline system.

“In a drip zone, or any irrigation zone, when you complete the irrigation cycle and the valve turns off, typically all that water drains out at the lowest point in the zone,” Foster says. “And that’s a lot of wasted water…so, one of the other advancements that’s happening is the integration of check valves inside each tiny, little drip emitter.

“So, instead of having an in-line check valve, which have been around for years and years, that are big and bulky and the size of your fist, the industry has developed tiny check valves that are located in each individual drip emitter,” he adds. “And what that means is, when the zone shuts off, all the water stays in the drip line.”

Rain Bird also has a patent for its copper chip technology in its new XFS Subsurface Dripline.

“When you go subsurface, you have to protect the devices from root intrusion and that’s a big problem,” Foster says.

“One of the most important advancements is the use of copper located right in the drip emitter itself. Copper is known to resist root growth, so as roots get closer to a high concentration of copper, the growth of the root is interfered with.”

Hunter is also getting into the copper game, and Robb Kowalewski, product manager for Hunter’s valves and micro-irrigation division, says a copper dripline will debut in Q1 of 2021.

“I think the way people design will probably modify globally…and because of that, drip irrigation will continue to grow and be more and more relevant.” Robb Kowalewski, product manager for Hunter’s valves and micro-irrigation division

However, Kowalewski says one of the company’s tried and true products is even better at preventing root intrusion.

“What we consider to be our better invest is our Eco-Wrap and our Eco-Mat,” he says. “The Eco-Wrap is a dripline that has a fleece lining wrapped around it. It is more root-resistant than copper and, because of the fleece, it actually moves the water better under soil.”

Lackner says Toro still has a flagship products, the DL2000, which uses a cylindrical emitter that’s also tolerant of debris.

Additionally, Lackner says Toro is working on creating products that ease installation.

“We revamped our drip zone valve kits about three years ago, and with anything with drip, it’s important to have a filter on the line as well as a pressure regulator,” he says.

“The revamp we did was basically consolidating our regulators into one model that can tolerate a wider range of flows. We’ve got essentially a universal flow pressure regulator…that makes things easier for the contractor to install.”

Furthermore, Toro’s tri-lock fittings fit multiple size driplines, which helps contractors when retrofitting or dealing with maintenance issues.

Rain Bird has also been working to speed up installation.

“We’ve developed pre-assembled units we call control zone kits,” Foster says. “Instead of having to go find all the individual components, and confirming they all work together, we’ve done all that work for them. ”

Netafim has created its wheelbarrow tubing dispenser and Techlock Fittings with the motto “keep it simple” in mind.

“The tubing dispenser is just that. You put a roll onto the wheelbarrow. Like a lazy Susan, you’re able to move it around easily and dispense tubing quickly,” Troche says.

“The Tech Lock fittings are meant to be used instead of insert fittings when you think you might move the tubing again or want to change the design down the road. They are meant to be used in smaller spaces.”

Making drip a mainstay.

Hall believes that drip’s popularity plays into contractors being more educated on the subject.

“I can recall years ago that drip was considered a splurge or a luxury,” he says. “But today it’s become common practice in a lot of areas. Irrigated areas are becoming smaller and smaller as populations expand, so drip is very much mainstream today.

“The need to throw water great distances are limited to athletic fields, golf course, large parks and places like that.”

And Hall says drip irrigation will only continue to evolve.

“I would suspect that as drip continues to grow in popularity, you’re going to find more companies offering creative ways of quickly installing it,” he says.

Lackner too believes more people will embrace drip irrigation, and other sustainable measures.

“I anticipate we’ll see more fluent water infrastructure expansion and people using more retreated water to water their landscapes,” he says.

Troche says Netafim has been looking to encourage more people to use reclaimed water as well.

“As more water agencies and states require the use of reclaimed water, we have developed two options,” he says. “We’ve always had a reclaimed option that drained completely and with our emitter filtration and new copper oxide root intrusion technology, we now offer a reclaimed check valve version for projects that have elevation changes.”

Kowalewski also says an increased focus on the environment will lead to more landscape designers to incorporate drip.

“I think drip irrigation will continue to grow at a higher pace than overhead sprays,” he says. “I think the way people design will probably modify globally…and because of that drip irrigation will continue to grow and be more and more relevant.”

But with so many options out there, Kowalewski says it can be difficult for contractors to know exactly what to choose.

“I think there are some many (products) that it’s confusing so I think companies will probably consolidate products,” he says.

Foster says simplifying the installation process is more important now than ever.

“Sometimes, simple innovations like pre-assembling a system may be very helpful for customers,” he says.

“I think it’s important especially with a tight labor market, and COVID-19, contractors want to do work with smaller teams and get in and out of the jobsite quickly.”

Thanks to its shorter profile and enhanced agility, the stand-on mower is becoming the preferred mowing machine for more landscape companies.

Nate Hrobsky, owner of Nate’s Landscaping & Snow Removal in Milton, Wis., first began using stand-ons several years ago. Now he won’t use anything else. It’s all about productivity.

“We mow some very large commercial properties,” Hrobsky says. “We typically need three 60-inch mowers going at once. The biggest advantage we’ve found with stand-ons is that we’re able to get as many as four on our big trailer. When we were using riders, we could only fit two.”

Some landscape companies have found that a stand-on is a good match for smaller properties, too.

“If we are mowing anything less than a half-acre, we use either a 48-inch rider or 36-inch stand-on,” says Alex Kirby, owner of Trifecta Lawn Care in Lexington, S.C. “I personally wouldn’t want to be standing all day to mow. But in our market where there are a lot of smaller subdivision yards, a 36-inch stand-on is great. It fits through any gate, is excellent around beds and eliminates the need for push mowing. A stand-on is also lighter which is good for delicate turf. Plus, we can flip the platform up and turn it into a walk-behind if we have to, like if the grass is pretty wet. Overall, the flexibility of the stand-on has been awesome for us. We don’t even own any walk-behinds.”

Brad Behr, owner of Copper Creek Cuts in Macclenny, Fla., also uses a 36-inch stand-on for his smaller residential accounts. For increased productivity, he switches to his 48-inch stand-on to cut the larger front lawn, like common areas of an HOA or spots where gates aren’t an issue. Added productivity is just one of the reasons why.

“There is some slope to the terrain surrounding two ponds in those common areas,” Behr says. “The larger the wheelbase, the better the mower is going to do on slopes. From a safety standpoint, I wouldn’t even want to attempt mowing those ponds with a rider.”

Saving time.

Kirby says that by completely removing walk-behind mowers from his operation, maintenance crew productivity has skyrocketed.

“Using stand-ons instead of walk mowers has allowed us to add another two or three properties to each route,” Kirby says. Having a stand-on on the trailer also helps when a rider unexpectedly becomes inoperable. “Before, the crew would have been done for the day because it wouldn’t have been possible to finish the route by push mowing. But with a 36-inch stand-on, the crew can still get through the mowing without too much lost time,” Kirby says.

DJ Aldrich, co-owner of Aldrich Landscape in Sylvania, Ohio, says stand-on mowers have been a boon to his crews’ productivity as well. The company began experimenting with its first stand-on a few years ago, replacing one of its intermediate walk-behinds. Now all of the company’s intermediate walk-behind mowers have been replaced by stand-ons. In fact, at Aldrich Landscape, the zero-turn rider has even been replaced.

“We have found that a stand-on is quicker than a sit-down,” Aldrich says. “You have a much better point of view. Everything is out in front of you so you don’t have to worry about anything that might be a couple feet behind you. Your turns can be faster. We’ve also found that the balance is a lot better. For the most part, your center of gravity is over the back wheels. You can turn a bit faster with less risk of tearing up the turf.”

Hrobsky says his crews have come to appreciate the fact that visibility is better on a stand-on. Since an operator is standing upright, it’s easier to see over hills, shrubs and other obstacles.

Stand-ons can also be advantageous when debris is in the mower’s pathway. “The operator can easily step off of the mower because the blades shut right off,” Hrobsky says. “Then the operator can grab the piece of trash, stuff it in a garbage bag or pail, jump back on and get back to mowing. It’s so much faster than if you’re on a riding mower.”

Employee adoption.

For veteran employees who are used to sit-down mowers, switching to a stand-on may be met with some initial skepticism. It pays to be patient and to remain enthusiastic. “Experienced employees will eventually come around,” Aldrich says.

Aldrich says it was interesting to watch his employees come to accept the concept of stand-up mowing. For those who had experience operating riders, it took a few days to get the feel. “The quality of their mowing was the same, but it took a little while until they became comfortable and started getting really efficient,” Aldrich says.

To help expedite the learning curve, Aldrich set up cones in his parking lot so employees could get some extra practice at the end of the day. “The hand controls are a little different,” Aldrich says. “Our new employees who had never operated a zero-turn rider picked it up pretty quickly. They’re all 19 to 25 years old and play video games, so the hand controls came pretty naturally.” Another slight difference employees might run into relates to preventive maintenance.

“Since a stand-on is more compact, it might be a little harder to work on than a zero-turn,” Behr says. “A lot of it depends on the manufacturer and how it designs things. With one brand I’ve tried in the past, you have to bolt from both the bottom and top of the spindles. With the kind of lift I have in my shop, changing the middle blade was almost impossible for me.”

On the other hand, Aldrich says that with the right design, a stand-on mower can actually make preventive maintenance a little easier.

“The nice thing with a stand-on is that there are no safety bars going around the mower to block off parts of the engine,” Aldrich says. “With the stand-ons we use, the engine is right there and easy to get to. Oil changes are easy.”

When asked if there are any downsides to a stand-on mower, Hrobsky could only point out how someone feels at the end of a long day of work.

“Honestly, the only thing I can say is that for a guy like me who is 44, comfort can be an issue,” Hrobsky says. “Stand-up mowing for eight hours can leave me pretty exhausted. But that’s not really an issue because my crews are doing the mowing for me now. They are mostly in their 20s and have no issues whatsoever. In fact, they all tell me that they would never go back to a riding mower now.”

The author is a freelance writer based in Wisconsin.

Could battery-powered equipment be the future of the industry?

Austin Hall, president of Greenwise in Evanston, Illinois, and Michael Reed, owner of Quiet Lawn in Longs, South Carolina, believe that’s where things are headed.

The primary advantages of the equipment seem to be threefold – better for the environment, better for crews and less noise pollution.

Hall, who admits Greenwise is still using a mix of gas- and battery-powered equipment as they make the transition to fully electric, says making a conscience effort to help the environment was the motivating factor.

“Our company is an organic lawn care company and sustainable landscape maintenance and design business,” he says. “Sort of everything we do is around the idea of sustainability and our tagline is ‘lighten your footprint.’ We use organic fertilizer, all-natural weed control products and have been thinking about ways we can lighten our footprint in respect to our emissions.”

Reed says he chose to use battery-powered equipment to stand out from the competition.

“It was so different than what anybody else was doing,” he says. “That’s what really pushed me in this direction.”

Getting the right gear.

Reed says that as more electric equipment hits the market, Quiet Lawn uses a wide range of it.

“We use a standard, zero-turn commercial mower and handheld electric equipment,” he says. “Pretty much everything we use is electric – from our blowers, edgers, trimmers and chainsaws. It’s rare that we have to use a piece of gas-powered equipment. If we have to rent a piece of heavy equipment, that’d be our only exception.”

Greenwise also continues to add battery-powered equipment.

“We’ve been using battery-powered hand tools, primarily blowers, for the past four or five years,” he says. “We also have two battery-powered mowers. They are 33-inch mowers and we find them very effective. Increasing, over time, we’re going to transition our propane-powered mowers to battery-powered ones. Eventually, we expect to be 100% battery-powered.”

While some doubt the strength of battery-powered equipment, Reed says in his experience it’s been comparable to gas-powered, and appeals to him.

“When I used gas equipment, I’d get headaches from smelling the fumes all day,” he says. “You don’t get that with the electric.”

No noise, no problem.

As Greenwise continues to transition to fully electric, they launched a new route.

“This year, we’ve launched an all-electric maintenance crew, which uses battery-powered mowers, battery-powered line trimmers, hedge trimmers and edgers," Hall says. "Basically, everything that comes out of the trailer is battery-powered for that specific crew.”

Robyn McMurray Hurtig, director of community engagement at Greenwise, says the new service couldn’t have come at a better time.

“People are home trying to have conference calls and working from home and they’re hearing landscapers with these gas-powered blowers and it’s driving people crazy,” she says. “We’ve had a lot of requests for electric and we wanted to honor that and lead the charge in our area.”

McMurray Hurtig adds Greenwise started piloting the new route in the spring, and the response has been overwhelmingly positive.

“It’s been very well received,” she says. “I’ve talked to a few of the customers, and one in particular talked about how she really used to dread the day her landscape service would come because it was so loud. When we came with our all electric crew, she couldn’t even tell when we left.”

Reed says that having no noise pollution is also what leads clients to his company as well.

“Our customers really appreciate it,” he says. “We are a lot less intrusive on their lives. We’re in a big area for retirees. Probably 95% of our customers are retired, so we don’t want to be waking them up at 8 a.m. We try not to disturb them.”

“Three years ago, people would almost laugh at you when they heard you had an electric lawn service. Now, people come up to you like you’re a rock star and are asking about your equipment.” Michael Reed, owner, Quiet Lawn

Change isn’t easy.

While Hall and Reed are certainly happy to sing the praises of battery-powered equipment, they do recognize that it can pose some challenges.

“I think one thing that might prevent certain companies from adopting this technology is just the upfront investment that’s required for mowing equipment,” Hall says. “If you’re going to buy a typical 36-inch walk-behind mower, it may be double the cost.”’

Reed says that while the upfront costs are indeed higher, the equipment tends to pay for itself in the long run with less maintenance costs and not having to purchase fuel.

In addition to price, Reed says that companies could run into problems if they aren’t keeping up with charging.

“You can’t stop at a battery station if you run out of battery. That’s the only thing. You’ve got to have plenty of batteries and a good charging system,” he says.

Hall and Reed also say they’ve had to work hard to get their crews on board with the electric equipment.

“There is a bit of a learning curve because it does feel different then a piece of gas equipment when it’s in your hand. There’s also a different procedure because you’ve got to make sure everything is charging overnight,” Reed says.

Hall says getting his crews to slow down and recognize the benefits of the equipment was difficult at first.

“Culturally, we’ve had to work through with our crews on what it means to use battery-powered equipment because the work gets done, in some cases, a bit more slowly,” he says. “It’s typical in the industry that crews want to use the equipment that has the most power so they can work efficiently, so it’s been a mindset change with our employees.”

Pricing it right.

Both Reed and Hall say that location plays a major role in pricing and determining whether to charge a premium for electric lawn care.

“We’re in a unique geography, in some of the villages, in and around Evanston, we’re actually restricted from using gas-powered blowers for a period of the season,” he says. “So, it’s been the standard for some time. In that case, we don’t price the service higher.”

However, Hall says there is a pricing premium for the new, all-electric service.

“(It’s) not really because of the cost of the equipment … but because we find it takes more time to complete the service,” he says.

Reed chooses not to charge more for electric lawn care and keeps his prices competitive.

“It depends on the area someone is in. In my area, being environmentally friendly isn’t really a hot thing. If I was in an urban area where that’s much more of a big deal, I would definitely market the environmental aspect and try to charge a premium,” he says. “For me, I’m right there with the other good companies around here. We aren’t the lowest and we aren’t the highest.”

Green growth.

According to Reed and Hall, the technology behind electric equipment has come a long way, and they expect it to continue improving.

Hall said that he’s had his crews demoing some of the latest equipment and they’ve been pleased with the results.

“For some time, we thought battery-powered blowers just didn’t have the muscle for spring and fall cleanups,” he says. “Our crews are telling us they could be, and it’s been very encouraging for us.”

Hall suggests anyone considering using the equipment give it a test run first.

“There are a lot of companies out there that are willing to allow landscape contractors to demo equipment,” he says. “It helps you understand the range of options.”

Reed says he goes to trade shows every year and each year he is seeing battery-powered equipment have more of a presence.

“It’s amazing the switch in the industry and how fast the industry is heading toward electric,” he says. “Three years ago, people would almost laugh at you when they heard you had an electric lawn service. Now, people come up to you like you’re a rock star and are asking about your equipment.”

He feels the industry will continue to get behind the technology and says eventually it will become the norm.

“Within 10 years, the majority of the industry will be headed in this direction,” he says. “People who pay attention can read the tea leaves and see that’s where it’s headed. It just makes sense with the price going down and the capacity going up.”